Wednesday, December 30 - Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore

Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974)

A recently widowed woman is on the road with her precocious young son, determined to make a new life for herself as a singer.

Tuesday, December 29 - Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?

Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed? (1963)

Actor Jason Steel plays a caring, godlike doctor on television. Off the set, he's the insecure fiancé of pretty art teacher Melissa. Jason doesn't know what to expect of marriage, especially after seeing how the fires have burned out in all of his poker buddies' marriages. Complicating matters: his friends' wives have confused Jason with his television persona and they keep popping up at his house eager to check out his bedside manner.

Monday, December 28 - Naughty Arlette

Naughty Arlette (1949) The Romantic Age (original title)

"The Romantic Age" (also known as "Naughty Arlette") is a British film set in a girls finishing school. A new teacher has arrived and it's a 'he'....not just another female instructor. Immediately, a French girl in the school, Arlette (Mai Zetterling) sees him as a contest....how long will it be until she makes him fall for her? At first, the teacher sees through her and realizes she's a bad influence. However, soon he proves that he's a total idiot and falls for her.

Sunday, December 27 - Werewolf of London

Werewolf of London (1935)

While in Tibet researching a mysterious flower that purportedly takes its strength from the moon, botanist Wilfred Glendon (Henry Hull) is bitten by a strange creature. Back in London, Glendon becomes absorbed in his research of the plant, and is annoyed by the appearance of fellow scientist Dr. Yogami (Warner Oland), who reveals that the plant is the only known temporary antidote for werewolves. Glendon remains skeptical until the next full moon, when he undergoes a startling transformation.

Saturday, December 26 - Bagdad

Bagdad (1949)

A Bedouin princess returns to Bagdad after being educated in England, only to find that her father has been treacherously murdered by the head of the Black Robes, a group of renegades. She is hosted by the Pasha, who is the corrupt representative of the national government. She is also courted by Prince Hassan, who is falsely accused of the murder. The plot revolves around her attempts to bring the killer to justice while being courted by the Pasha.

Friday, December 25 - Heatwave

Heatwave (1982)

Heatwave takes place in the lead-up to Christmas and, as the title suggests, Sydney is sweltering after successive days of high temperatures. A group of Kings Cross residents are fighting attempts to demolish their houses to make way for a giant development named Eden, financed by businessman Peter Houseman (Chris Haywood).

For three years, young firebrand Kate Dean (Judy Davis), and Mary Ford, editor of the community newspaper have led local opposition to Eden. In an effort to dramatically up the ante and bankrupt Houseman, the two women manage to secure the building union’s agreement to place construction bans on the proposed Eden site.

Although the protesters regard Eden as nothing more than a threat to their homes and community, others consider it represents the state of the art landmark in urban development. No one believes more than the brains behind the Eden’s design, architect Stephen West (Richard Moir).

With his million dollar Sydney harbour view and elegant European wife, West is far removed from the conflict being played out in the streets of Kings Cross. “The inner city is changing,” he tells the protestors. “Everyone wants to move closer to the centre and they’ll pay to do it. I’m sorry it’s just a natural process.” However, through his contact with the residents, particularly Kate with whom he develops an unlikely relationship, this ironclad worldview gradually begins to shift.

Thursday, December 24 - Highway Patrol: Blast Area Copter &

Highway Patrol (1955–1959): Blast Area Copter (Season 1 | Episode 31 - aired 30 April 1956)

Nervous and neurotic gunman Joe White robs a rural gas station and shoots the attendant. He commandeers a car driven by a woman named Marge, but the car soon runs out of gas and he compels Marge to travel with him on foot into a deserted area. They hide in a small shack, but Joe is unaware that the area is deserted because it has been heavily laden with explosives and cleared in preparation for a huge blasting project that is to take place that afternoon. Dan Mathews uses the Highway Patrol helicopter to ensure that the blasting area is fully clear and notices that the door to the shack is open. When he investigates, Joe makes an ill-considered attempt to commandeer the helicopter, putting them all at risk unless communication can somehow be established with Sergeant Corey.

Highway Patrol (1955–1959): Anti-Toxin (Season 1 | Episode 32 - aired May 1956 )

Dan Mathews gives a lift to Dr. Leonard, who is en route to the home of rancher Fred Bell. The doctor finds that Bell's 10-year-old son Johnny has gas gangrene and needs life-saving serum as quickly as possible. The serum must be delivered by air from a distant city and Bell's foreman Marty Gower offers to help Dan find his way to retrieve the serum from the airport over the rough back roads. Dan returns to the Bell household, but he bears injuries from an automobile accident and both the serum and Marty are missing. Marty was having financial problems and Dan suspects that he may have caused the accident deliberately so he could hold the serum for "ransom". Dan and Officer Abel backtrack from the location of the accident and discover that things are not always as they seem.

Wednesday, December 23 - And Now the Screaming Starts!

And Now the Screaming Starts! (1973)

Stephanie Beacham (stunningly appointed in a dazzling array of ornate hairpieces, hats and gowns with her bosom taking center stage) is a bride arriving at her groom's estate for the first time. On her wedding night (to Ian Ogilvy), she is menaced by a ghastly figure with a stump for a hand and two blown out eyes. Or is she imagining the whole thing?

She can't get anyone to tell her any details about the history of the house, chiefly during the time that Ogilvy's grandfather ran it, and any time someone relents and decides to fill her in, they are struck dead. Family physician (Patrick Magee) sends for noted a psychologist (Peter Cushing), who tries his best to sort through the rubble of the mystery

Tuesday, December 22 - Kiss Kiss, Kill Kill

Kiss Kiss, Kill Kill (1966) Kommissar X - Jagd auf Unbekannt (original title)

Two American crimefighters from New York City find themselves in Yugoslavia. Private Eye Jo Walker is on the trail of a missing nuclear scientist whilst NYPD Captain Tom Rowland is training a local police force. Their paths cross on a path of pretty girls and frequent murders leading to an evil mastermind named Oberon. Oberon has murdered his business partners and has amassed a collection of radioactive gold bullion on an island in the Adriatic guarded by a private army of hypnotised women.

Monday, December 21 - The Magus

The Magus (1968)

A mysterious man (Anthony Quinn) and a mysterious woman (Candice Bergen) play mind games with a British teacher (Michael Caine) on a Greek island.

(Michael Caine said that it was one of the worst films he had been involved in because no one knew what it was all about.)

Sunday, December 20 - Ten Thousand Bedrooms

Ten Thousand Bedrooms (1957)

In Rome, hotel magnate Ray Hunter (Dean Martin) meets associate Maria Martelli (Eva Bartok), who berates his business style, then apologizes and plays guide before taking him home to meet her family. There, Ray meets Maria's younger sister, Nina (Anna Maria Alberghetti), and after a quick romance, they decide to marry. When Ray learns the traditional Martellis insist that Maria must wed first, he arranges for her marriage to her boyfriend -- only to wonder if he is marrying the right sister.

Saturday, December 19 - I Love You, Alice B. Toklas!

I Love You, Alice B. Toklas! (1968)

Successful, strait-laced Jewish lawyer Harold Fine (Peter Sellers) takes a walk on the wild side after reluctantly agreeing to marry his long-time girlfriend, Joyce (Joyce Van Patten). Unexpectedly smitten by his hippie brother's flower-child girlfriend, Nancy (Leigh Taylor-Young), and her potent, marijuana-laced brownies, Harold ditches his establishment life and embraces communal living with Nancy, only to realize the freewheeling life might not be all that it seemed.

Friday, December 18 - Margin for Error

Margin for Error (1943)

The story begins on a transport taking soldiers to fight in Europe. One of the soldiers, Moe Finklestein (Milton Berle), tells the men a story to buck up their morale and get them to fight as a team.

It seems that before the war, Finkelstein was a New York City cop and he was given the dubious duty of being stationed at the German consulate in order to protect them. Being Jewish, he was loathe to accept the assignment. Once there, he comes to see that the head of the consultate, Herr Baumer (Otto Preminger) is a nasty piece of work. Baumer gives ample reason for everyone there to kill him and ultimately when he dies, it's "Murder on the Orient Express": who did it and why?

Thursday, December 17 - The Possessed

The Possessed (1965) La donna del lago (original title)

Bernardo is a burned out writer who, following a failed relationship, heads to a hotel on the edge of a lake where he was once infatuated with a maid named Tilde. He plans to take their relationship further, but only if he can find her... it turns out that Tilde committed suicide the previous winter.

Someone in town confides in Bernardo that there's a rumour going around town that as well as ingesting poison Tilde must also have accidentally slashed her own neck with a knife too, which sets off Bernardo on a quest to find out what really happened to this woman.

The mystery deepens as certain characters in the hotel start behaving strangely. First off there's the owner's daughter Irma, who is upset that the family's reputation is shattered, then there's her brother Mario and his weird wife who barely talks and walks around the lake at midnight, then there's the owner himself, whose happy, servile façade begins to slip as Bernardo goes snooping around the place.

Wednesday, December 16 - Two for the Seesaw

Two for the Seesaw (1962)

Jerry Ryan (Mitchum) is a lawyer from Nebraska who has recently separated from his wife. To get away from it all, he has moved to a shabby apartment in New York. He is struggling with the divorce, which has been filed but is not final, and takes long walks at night.

At a party, he meets Gittel Mosca (MacLaine), a struggling dancer. They instantly get along, and begin to fall in love. But the relationship is hampered by their differences in background and temperament.

Jerry gets a job with a New York law firm and prepares to take the bar examination. He helps Gittel rent a loft for a dance studio, which she rents out to other dancers. But their relationship is stormy, and Jerry has difficulty separating himself emotionally from his wife.

They prepare to move in together nevertheless, but Gittel is upset when she learns that the divorce came through and Jerry did not tell her about it. Jerry explains that even though he is divorced from his former wife on paper, they remain bonded in many ways. He and Gittel decide he needs to return to Nebraska.

Tuesday, December 15 - Seance on a Wet Afternoon

Seance on a Wet Afternoon (1964)

Myra, a self-styled psychic in London, concocts a scheme to gain celebrity. She convinces Billy, her weak-willed husband, to kidnap the young daughter of wealthy parents. She and Billy will demand money, and then she will go to the parents with extra-sensory messages that will help the police find the child and the ransom. The plan unfolds beautifully, except that after her first visit to the parents, the police want to check her out. He's scared. As her delusions worsen, Bill realizes Myra may not want the child found alive. Behind it all is also the death at birth, years before, of their only child, whom they've named "Arthur", and who is Myra's contact with the beyond.

Monday, December 14 - Summerfield

Summerfield (1977)

A teacher appointed to a small-town school becomes curious about the unexplained disappearance of his predecessor. While investigating, he is drawn into the strange world of a reclusive family whose daughter has a rare medical condition.

Sunday, December 13 - None But the Lonely Heart

None But the Lonely Heart (1944)

In pre-World War II London, Ernie Mott (Cary Grant), a Cockney layabout whose father was killed during World War I, learns that his mother, Ma (Miss Ethel Barrymore), is dying of cancer. In an effort to relieve his mother from the strain of running her shop on her own, Ernie pledges to help her with the business. Ma's failing health and financial desperation lead her to engage in some crooked business dealings, while Ernie courts trouble as he gets involved with a beguiling gangster's wife.

Saturday, December 12 - Penny Serenade

Penny Serenade (1941)

The film charts the meeting, courtship, and marriage of Julie Gardiner (Irene Dunne) and Roger Adams (Cary Grant) through the playing of popular songs relevant to each time period. After their spur-of-the-moment marriage on New Years' Eve and a night in Roger's train compartment en route to San Francisco, Julie rejoins Roger in Tokyo where he has a stint as a reporter. Julie loses their unborn child in the 1923 Tokyo earthquake and returns to California despondent, until their friend Applejack Carney (Edgar Buchanan) encourages them to adopt a child. While Roger struggles to keep a newspaper going in the fictional California town of Rosalia, Julie keeps house and outfits the nursery.

They apply at an adoption agency for a two-year-old boy, and receive a call from Miss Oliver (Beulah Bondi) that a five-week-old baby girl is available. Though Roger would have preferred a boy, he falls in love with the baby, and he and Julie care for her during their one-year probation period. At the end of that time, Roger has lost the newspaper and the law will not allow him to adopt the baby without an income. Roger appears before the judge and delivers an impassioned plea to keep the girl, whom he considers his own. The judge awards custody, and Roger returns home to Julie with their daughter.

Years later, Roger and Julie swell with pride as their daughter, not yet old enough to play an angel in the Christmas play, plays the "echo" instead. The following Christmas, Julie writes to Miss Oliver that Trina has died from a sudden illness. The child's death sends Roger into a depression, and Julie resolves to leave him, believing he does not need her anymore. Just as she is about to leave for the train station, the couple receives a phone call from Miss Oliver, saying that a two-year-old boy has just become available for adoption. Roger and Julie embrace, ready to rebuild their marriage with a new child.

Friday, December 11 - I, Monster

I, Monster (1971)

Psychologist Charles Marlowe (Lee) invents a drug which will release his patients' inhibitions. When he tests it on himself, he becomes the evil Edward Blake, who descends into crime and eventually murder. Utterson (Cushing), Marlowe's lawyer, believes that Blake is blackmailing his friend until he discovers the truth.

Thursday, December 10 - The Golden Head

The Golden Head (1964)

Milly, Michael and Harold Stevenson are in Budapest with their father, a British inspector who is attending an international convention of criminal investigators. Two thieves use the conference as an opportunity to steal the golden bust of Saint László from the Cathedral of Gyór and attempt to smuggle it out of the country. The Stevenson children trail the thieves through Budapest and the surrounding area, providing a widescreen travelogue of the culture and landmarks of Hungary

Wednesday, December 9 - Light in the Piazza + Highway Patrol: License Plates & Hitchhiker Dies

Light in the Piazza (1962)

Because her adult daughter has the mental age of 10, Meg Johnson (de Havilland) keeps very close watch over Clara (Mimieux), a beautiful blonde who, despite her impairment, is very much a woman and attracting a lot of attention in Italy. (This is extremely realistic - blondes do great over there.) In Florence, Clara is pursued relentlessly by an enthusiastic suitor, Fabrizio. His parents (Brazzi and Nancy Nevison) approve of the relationship. What's waiting for Clara back home is an institution, though a good one, that her father (Sullivan) is insisting upon in hopes of rekindling his lost relationship with his wife. Meg is in a dilemma and makes a bold decision.

Highway Patrol (1955–1959): License Plates (Episode 29 - aired 16 April 1956)

Recently-paroled holdup man Seth Roberts returns to his old trade and initially pulls several successful jobs due to his mannerly demeanor and his nondescript appearance. Young Jimmy James (who aspires to become a police officer) spots him switching getaway cars after a robbery and is able to provide Dan Mathews with accurate descriptions of Roberts, his car, and even his out-of-state license plate and plate number. After two holdup victims corroborate Jimmy's description of Roberts, Dan and Sergeant Corey track him to a motel owned by his cousin, Carl Simmons. Notes found at the motel enable them to set a trap for Roberts, who has already arranged for a ride back to Dallas with an unsuspecting traveler.

Highway Patrol (1955–1959): Hitchhiker Dies (Episode 30 - aired 23 April 1956)

Holdup man "Stash" Irwin robs the Apex Industrial Plastics Company of a $28,000 payroll, but is critically wounded while attempting to flee. He abandons his car, hides the money in a culvert, and hitches a ride with Warren Siddons (an Apex employee who is driving a nearly identical vehicle). After Irwin dies, Siddons is arrested at a Highway Patrol roadblock and appears to be complicit in the robbery, especially after Irwin's accomplices plant additional "evidence" in Siddons' home and office. Siddons steadfastly maintains his innocence in the face of seemingly overwhelming evidence to the contrary, and Dan Mathews and Officer Johnson eventually deduce that Siddons is either an innocent man or a fool. Betting on the former, they set a trap for Irwin's two accomplices.

Tuesday, December 8 - Sweet Bird of Youth (1962)

Sweet Bird of Youth 

Handsome, young Chance Wayne returns to his hometown of St. Cloud, Mississippi accompanied by a considerably older film star, Alexandra Del Lago. She is needy and depressed, particularly about a film she has just finished making, and speaks of retiring from the acting world forever.

Chance had gone to Hollywood to seek fame and fortune at the behest of St. Cloud's most powerful and influential citizen, "Boss" Finley, either too naive or unwilling to appreciate that Finley merely wants Chance, a waiter from the country club, to keep away from his beautiful daughter, Heavenly.

A political kingpin, Finley enjoys putting Heavenly on display as a model of purity and chastity. His ruthless son, Tom Jr., aids his father's ambitions in any way he can. He, too, is unhappy to have Chance Wayne back in town.

Desperate to have Alexandra further his fantasy of becoming a star, Chance has become her lover. He goes so far as to blackmail her with a tape recording, on which she speaks openly of a dependence on drugs. Alexandra defies him, becoming irate at the realization that Chance's romantic interests in Heavenly are more important to him than her own needs.

Just when Alexandra is at her most vulnerable, a call comes from Hollywood to notify her that the new movie she's just made appears to be a certain success, reviving her career. In a scene with Finley, Chance is shown being muscled off the screen by Finley's henchmen for purposes of either being roughed up or castrated. Meanwhile, Finley's discarded mistress, Miss Lucy, exposes Finley's underhanded tactics to the government authorities. Chance, with nowhere else to turn and still on his own two feet, persuades Heavenly to leave town with him. Able now to face the truth about himself, Chance and Heavenly reconcile and leave town together, leaving her father to face indictment.

Monday, December 7 - Hungry Hill

Hungry Hill (1947)

The interrelationships between three generations within the lineage of the wealthy "John Brodricks" - Copper John, his son Greyhound John, and Greyhound John's son Wild Johnnie - in the mid to late nineteenth century Ireland are presented. Their stories are centered on the copper mine Copper John develops on Hungry Hill, and the feud between the Brodricks and the townsfolk, but especially the Donovans, who, having claimed Hungry Hill as their own for centuries before the Brodricks displaced them two hundred years ago when they moved into the area, have always wanted it maintained in its pristine natural condition while Copper John sees the mine as progress in addition to increasing his own and his family's wealth. Unlike his brother Henry who ends up being the favored son because of the issue, Greyhound John has no interest in or aptitude in any aspect of the mine, which places him at odds with his father. A similar animosity develops between Copper John and Wild Johnnie, the former who has never trusted the latter - that mistrust initially unfounded - which has profoundly affected Wild Johnnie's development, he who is only waiting for his grandfather to die to inherit his fortune. Present for most of these proceedings is Fanny Rosa, Greyhound John's tempestuous wife and Wild Johnnie's mother who primarily wants to see peace exist not only within the family but in the community.

Sunday, December 6 - It Takes a Thief: Get Me to the Revolution on Time

It Takes a Thief (1968–1970): Get Me to the Revolution on Time (Season 2 | Episode 5 - aired 22 October 1968)

Al must pose as a cocktail mixologist to gain access to a safe which can only be opened with multiple electronic keys, each emitting a different tonal pitch.

Saturday, December 5 - 13 Frightened Girls (1963)

13 Frightened Girls (1963)

While attending a school for diplomats' daughters, the teen-aged daughter of the American ambassador uses her access to various embassies to engage in espionage.

Friday, December 4 - Short Night of Glass Dolls

Short Night of Glass Dolls (1971) La corta notte delle bambole di vetro (original title)

The corpse of reporter Gregory Moore (Jean Sorel) is found in a Prague plaza and brought to the local morgue. But Moore is actually alive, trapped inside his dead body and desperately recalling how the mysterious disappearance of his beautiful girlfriend (Barbara Bach) led to a terrifying conspiracy of depravity. He begins to walk in through his mind. How Mira's sudden disappearance made the police to suspect him instead. He delves more & more into the matter & discovers a mysterious Klub99 which exteriorly practices music but interiorly more occultly sinister. He ends up visiting the club discretely & searches or at least tries to search every corner of the club. But Moore ultimately fails to search the very room where his missing girlfriend Mira's dead naked body is lying covered with flowers with her sightless eyes staring at the ceiling. As Moore leaves, the janitor of the club checks on Mira's body & praises how lovely she is even after death. Ultimately, the entire fact bounces right back at Moore which takes him to even a more sinister and shocking end.

Thursday, December 4 - They Knew What They Wanted

They Knew What They Wanted (1940)

When visiting San Francisco, Tony Patucci, an ageing illiterate winegrower from the Napa Valley, sees waitress Amy Peters and falls in love. Returning home, he persuades his foreman Joe, an incorrigible womanizer, to write her a letter in Tony's name. Tony's courtship by mail culminates with a proposal, and when she requests a picture of him, he sends one of Joe. Amy accepts and goes to Napa to be married. Although horrified to discover that her prospective husband is the portly Tony, she decides to go through with the marriage. However, while Tony is in bed after an accident, Amy and Joe have an affair. Two months later, as Tony plans the wedding, she discovers that she is pregnant. Upon learning this, Tony pummels Joe, who leaves the vineyards. but forgives Amy (wait a minute! Who forgives Amy? Is it Joe or is it Tony? I won't tell...), and insists that they still be married, But she is unable to forgive herself, so she leaves with the priest who has come to marry them, while Tony looks on, hoping that she will return one day.

Wednesday, December 2 - The House That Dripped Blood

The House That Dripped Blood (1971)

A Scotland Yard investigator looks into four mysterious cases involving an unoccupied house and its tragic previous tenants: 1) A hack novelist encounters a strangler who's the villain of his books, leading his wife to question his sanity, 2) Two men are obsessed with a wax figure of a woman from their past, 3) A little girl with a stern, widowed father displays an interest in witchcraft, and 4) An arrogant horror film actor purchases a black cloak which gives him a vampire's powers.

Tuesday, December 1 - The Man with Bogart's Face

The Man with Bogart's Face (1980)

A man calling himself Sam Marlowe (Robert Sacchi) has his face altered to resemble that of his idol, Humphrey Bogart, and then opens a detective agency. At first he and his secretary Duchess (Misty Rowe) have meager business, but things pick up after a shooting puts Sam's picture in the paper. Some ruthless people, who are coincidentally also similar to characters in Bogart films (and played by Victor Buono, Herbert Lom, and Michelle Phillips), are after a priceless set of blue sapphires called the Eyes of Alexander (from a statue of Alexander the Great), and Marlowe and Duchess are caught in the middle of it all.

Monday, November 30 - Kill, Baby... Kill!

Kill, Baby... Kill! (1966) Operazione paura (original title)

Dr. Eswai is called by Inspector Kruger to a small village to perform an autopsy on a woman who has died under suspicious circumstances. Despite help from Ruth, the village witch, Kruger is killed and it is revealed that the dead woman, as well as other villagers, have been killed by the ghost of Melissa, a young girl who, fed by the hatred of her grieving mother, Baroness Graps, exacts her revenge on them. Dr. Eswai, along with Monica, a local nurse, are lured into a fateful confrontation at the Villa Graps.